The Kissing Game
by Cehsja
Summary: Inventing The Kissing Game with Connor was probably more dangerous than the creatures themselves, and Abby knew it. Yet somehow, she couldn't stop playing. Set right after ep 3.8. Now Complete
1. The Rules of the Game

Connor nervously twiddled his thumbs in his lap. He and Abby were sitting on an old upside-down wooden fruit crate waiting for Danny and Becker to meet them. They'd been at the video store when the anomaly alert had gone off and Abby had driven her car to the site. They'd dealt with the anomaly and the others had driven off in one vehicle, but Abby and Connor hadn't gotten far at all because apparently Connor had forgotten to fill the petrol tank after he'd last borrowed the car. Abby had tried and tried to get the car started, but to no avail, and finally she'd made the embarrassing phone call and asked the others to turn around and come get them.

Only, there hadn't been room in the ARC vehicle because it only sat four, so they'd had to finish driving Sarah back to the ARC first and Connor and Abby were looking at at least a fifty minute wait now.

"I'm sorry, Abby," Connor said softly.

"It's fine, Con. Mistakes happen, no worries, yeah?"

Connor nodded, slightly confused as to why she wasn't yelling at him. Actually, Abby hadn't yelled at him in a few days, not since the day that she'd kissed him and Jack had moved out. Connor still hadn't gotten up the courage to ask if he could move back in yet. He was working on it. He was also working on the courage to ask her about the kiss. She hadn't mentioned it again, but he was kind of hoping it meant something. She hadn't kissed him again, but she was currently leaning against him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Abby?" he questioned, taking a deep breath as he did. "Are you me girlfriend now?"

Abby looked up at him, surprise registering across her face. "No," she said quickly. She scooted a bit further away from him on the crate, "Why would you think that?"

She instantly felt bad. She knew why he'd asked. To be honest, she kind of wanted to be his girlfriend, but she wasn't really ready for that yet, she didn't think. Not with Connor. She'd had too many relationships turn sour in the past and she wasn't going to risk losing Connor. Maybe one day, when she was a bit surer of her feelings, but not yet.

She could see the embarrassment and disappointment in Connor's face. "Oh," he said, "No reason, I just thought… you did kiss me, Abby." He hoped desperately that she wouldn't try to deny it.

"I know," she said quietly, "I'm sorry."

Connor shook his head vehemently, "No, no, no, Abby, don't be sorry. I mean, I enjoyed it. You can kiss me any time you want, yeah? I was just wondering why you did it then."

Abby smiled at his understanding. "Thanks, Con. I just, I guess I just felt like it is all."

Connor nodded slowly without responding and Abby could pretty nearly see the gears in his head turning as an idea was forming. Finally he turned to her, "Hey, Abs, what if sometime I just randomly felt like kissing you? What would happen then?"

Abby ducked her head a bit to try and hide her smile. Trust Connor to ask something like that. She bit her lip as she thought for a moment and then replied, "Well, I guess that would be fair. Fine, I grant you one freebie kiss, whenever you want it."

"Only one?"

Abby raised her eyebrow, "Of course only one."

"That don't seem fair, actually, Abs."

"Why not? I only kissed you once."

"Ye-es," Connor drew out the word into two syllables, "but when you kissed me once, I had kissed you zero times. Why can you kiss me just because you felt like it, but I can only kiss you because you kissed me first? Maybe I kiss you and even it up, but then I feel like it again the next day, and then I'm not allowed to?"

"Hmmm," Abby replied, thinking hard. He did have a point.

"Besides," Connor continued, "What's not to say that you won't ever feel like kissing me again? And if you did, are you allowed? Because that means you'd be allowed twice? And I'm not gonna say no to granting you a second go, if you'd like."

Abby burst out laughing and then said, "Okay, _fine_. Here's the deal Connor: you have two chances now, but you can't get more than one kiss ahead."

"What?"

"These are the rules, k? I kissed you once, so I got one kiss ahead. Now, you can kiss me once and tie it up. Then if it's a tie, it's anyone's turn, yeah? But you can't get more than one ahead."

"So, you mean, like I can kiss you now, but you can't kiss me, because you are already one kiss ahead?"

"Exactly, but if you kissed me, it'd be a tie. Got it?"

"It feels like your describing a game, Abby."

Abby giggled, "It can be a game: The Kissing Game. We play until either one of us is dating, or things get weird between us. If things become weird because of it, then we quit, okay?"

"If we quit, can we still kiss each other without the rules?"

"_No_!" Abby replied forcefully, playfully swatting at him, "So don't let things get weird."

"Okay, I think we need a time limit on turns though."

"What do you mean?"

"You know, like when you play chess with someone that takes ages and ages, then the next time you play with them, you tell them they have one minute to make a move or their turn is forfeit. So, if I got, say, a kiss ahead, there should be a time limit and if you don't kiss me by then, it's tie again and I'm allowed another go."

Abby hesitated, not so sure that it was such a good idea suddenly, but then again, she had rather enjoyed the kiss. Besides, granting Connor permission to kiss her sometimes might help. She _wanted _to kiss him. She'd probably enjoyed their kiss as much as he had. Maybe it'd help her make up her mind about him if she gave him permission to make some first moves on her. "Fine," she agreed, "What sort of time limit are you thinking of?"

"A week?"

Abby laughed, "No chance, that's way too soon."

"You choose, Abby. What are you comfortable with?"

Abby hesitated and then said, "Two months."

Connor grinned; that wasn't too bad actually. Much better than once every three years, which was what his record was at now. Plus, he was already up one and could take the next two if he wanted. "Agreed," he accepted, "Now, we need to fine tune the details. What constitutes a kiss?"

"What d'ya mean?"

"Well, I seem to remember you kissing me on the cheek once too, so maybe you're two up and I need an extra turn."

Abby chuckled, "That doesn't count. Anything but lips are freebies."

"Good," Connor said, leaning over to give her cheek a quick peck.

Abby blushed a bit, wondering what she'd just gotten herself into, but not yet regretting her game, after all it _was _only fair. "You _know_," she said, almost a bit flirtatiously, "it _is_ your turn."

"Yep," Connor grinned at her, but he made no effort to kiss her just then and Abby wondered if she should be worried about the fact that she was disappointed by it.

* * *

Connor was brilliant. _Somehow _he'd talked Abby into playing the best game ever with her, even having her suggest it and come up with the rules. He just wasn't sure how he'd done it. All he knew was that he wasn't about to blow his opportunity by making her stop playing. He had to be careful that things didn't get weird between them. He really wished he'd clarified with her what 'weird' actually meant.

In the meantime, he didn't want to use up his turns right away. It was best to save them, thought. On the other hand, if he waited for too long, it might feel more awkward. That was usually the case with things like this. So he'd use one turn soon and save the other. Unless Abbyused her turn of course, then he'd have two chances again. He grinned at the thought, but then squashed the idea. He had to make sure he didn't get his hopes up about that one. But then… she _had _kissed him first and, unless he was a lot less observant than he liked to believe, she'd been flirting with him today. Oh she'd denied they were boyfriend and girlfriend as always, but the game had been her idea and he'd noticed the disappointed look in her eyes when he hadn't kissed her on the spot. She might use her turns.

Tonight was their movie night and so Connor had had Danny and Becker drop him off at Abby's flat with her. It'd be the perfect opportunity, Connor thought, but before he kissed her, he wanted to get her to agree to let him move back in with her. To him, that was more important than the whole kissing thing and he was worried that if he did mess up and make things weird between them with the kiss, she'd say no.

It's been Abby's turn to choose the movie. Connor swore it was somehow her turn _every _week, but Abby said the same thing about him. Obviously that wasn't true though, because Abby had chosen tonight's movie. It was actually a good day for Abby to choose though, he mused, because he was thinking so hard about the kiss and the flat, that he wasn't really paying the movie any attention anyway.

About halfway through the movie, Connor suddenly noticed that Abby had gravitated towards him and now her arm was brushing with his every time she reached for the popcorn. He smiled to himself. She was _definitely _flirting… maybe.

He took a deep breath and then said hurriedly, "Abby, since the ARC hasn't towed your car over yet and I don't really want to bug Danny again and the weather isn't great, maybe I might just crash on your sofa for tonight?"

Abby nodded, a smile spreading across her face, "Yeah, sure. You don't have to ask, you know, Con."

"I don't?"

"No. I told you, didn't I, that you moving out was only temporary? You're welcome here as often as you like now that Jack's gone. It's your home too."

Connor was elated. She _wanted _him back. Permanently. In fact, he was so thrilled and that kiss had been on his mind so much, that he went for it. Accidentally. It wasn't at all the kiss he had planned on giving her. He'd wanted something like the breathtaking passionate one she'd given him at the race track, but before he knew what he was doing he'd leaned over and given her an overly-excited thank-you peck on the lips that was over before either of them could blink.

Abby turned with a half shrug back to the telly, but it didn't stop Connor from seeing the smile and blush on her face.

"Abby?" Connor asked tentatively.

"Yep?"

"Can that not count for the game?"

Abby turned back to him in disbelief. "What?"

"I want a redo kiss. Can I get it?"

" 'Course not! That's one of the rules. Why should I let you have a redo?"

"You never said that rule before," Connor pointed out. "It wasn't a proper kiss, Abs. Not like when you kissed me. It was more just a peck."

Abby hesitated. He was right about that, but she couldn't risk giving him _too _much control in what already seemed like a dangerous game. She shook her head. "Nope, no redos. It was on the lips, so it counts as a genuine kiss."

"Alright," Connor sighed, "but you really should have specified that rule before."

"Another rule: rules can be added at any time." Abby said with a grin.

Connor pouted, giving her his best puppy-dog face, but Abby ignored it as she continued, "If you want a proper kiss, you're still allowed another turn. After all, it's a tie now," she pointed out.

Connor grinned, "_or…_ _you _could initiate it."

Abby rolled her eyes and turned back to the movie, but Connor wasn't disappointed as he hadn't really expected anything different. Stubbornly, he did the same, determined not to use up his turn either.

About ten minutes before the movie ended, Abby suddenly turned to him. "Oh to hell with it," she muttered, before grabbing the back of his head to pull him close in a much, much more passionate kiss than what Connor had given her earlier. Connor returned it easily, hoping that returning a kiss didn't count as a turn, but too caught up in the moment to actually care.

When Abby did finally pull away, she blushed a bit as Connor smirked at her. "That was a great kiss, Abs," he complimented her, "but now you've gotta remember that you have to wait on me to move next and it's your own rule not to allow redos."

Abby shrugged and nodded, trying to act like she didn't care, and she partly didn't as the kiss had been worth it, but Connor was right; he now had full control over the game again and though she didn't know why, the thought did make her slightly uncomfortable still. She wasn't used to not having any control in any situation.

Connor on the other hand was incredibly happy with this turn of events. He'd never expected Abby to use another turn so soon, if at all. He didn't really want to stop kissing her, and he knew he could take a turn again now and continue it, but he also thought it might be too much at once. He didn't want Abby to take the game back. Instead he put his arms around her and drew her close to his side. She didn't pull away, just cuddled against him as they watched the movie credits roll across the screen. He did sneak a couple light kisses into her hair and saw her smile.


	2. Pursuing it Further

**Chapter 2/3 (PS: This story is dediated to SveaR as I wasn't going to finish it, but she talked me into it ;) )**

It felt good, _so good,_ Connor thought, to wake up in Abby's flat again. He leaned over the railing off the loft and grinned when he saw her cooking below and he caught a whiff of his favourite morning meal: French toast. Seemed she was just as happy to have him back as he was to be there.

He spent a little more time than usual brushing his teeth, planning on greeting her with a kiss to make sure that their game continued, and then nearly skipped down the stairs in his glee, until he reached the halfway point and tumbled down the remainder of the steps and landing quite un-elegantly on his bottom.

"Ow!" he groaned, glancing up to find a startled Abby staring at him. Then her expression changed and she began to giggle.

"Not funny, Abs," Connor grumbled, "You couldn't just help me up, could you?"

Abby didn't stop laughing at him as she reached for his elbow and started to drag him to his feet again. Thinking quickly, however, Connor took the opportunity to drag her down on top of himself instead and kiss her, one hand on her waist and the other in her hair to keep her close.

When he let her go, he saw the shock in her eyes, but then she actually blushed and it turned into a shy smile. She pressed her forehead against his, "Morning, Connor."

"Morning, Abs," Connor grinned back. The stared at each other in silence for a moment, enjoying looking into each other's eyes, before Connor suddenly realised that this should be a lot more awkward than it was. He blushed as he realised he was still holding onto her, keeping her close, and he let go and untangled himself from her. "Abby, I'm hungry, and I smell French toast."

* * *

It took Abby a moment longer to recover. _What the hell just happened? _She wondered to herself. Connor was in the kitchen now, pulling the toast from the warming rack, and here she sat on the floor still, trying to steady her heart. She stood up quickly so she didn't look like an idiot.

Although Connor had been the first to pull away, Abby thought that she, perhaps, been more affected by their intimate encounter than he was. For one thing, she realised as she ate her breakfast in silence, he'd more or less seemed to have forgotten already. He was chattering excitedly to her about something he was working on for the ADD and to be honest, she was proud of herself for having taken in that much of the conversation her mind was wandering so much. She wondered vaguely if their game was already getting too carried away. She almost wanted to tell Connor they had to end it now, but she could imagine the disappointment in his eyes if she did that, so she held off.

Two kisses each, she calculated. She wouldn't take any more turns herself, anyway. Connor had one more and, knowing him, he'd waste it quickly and then he'd have to wait two months for another. Maybe by then she'd be brave enough that it wouldn't matter.

* * *

Four hours later, Abby kissed Connor again. She certainly hadn't meant to, but then he'd gone and gotten himself injured during an anomaly call out and she'd been so worried. She hadn't really seen what had happened. She'd only turned away for a split second and the next thing she knew he was lying unconscious on the ground. Becker and Danny were off somewhere dealing with a runaway stegosaurus and she and Connor had been watching the anomaly. She'd found out later he'd simply tripped on a cord and fell, hitting his head, but at the time she hadn't even cared. She'd just been so relieved to see him open his eyes that she'd kissed him before he had the chance to sit up or even to say anything. Apparently this game was making it too easy for her, and it was definitely becoming a habit.

Connor seemed to understand though. He seemed to know that Abby had been genuinely worried and he'd pulled her close to him. "I'm okay, Abs. Sorry if I scared you."

"Yeah, just don't do that again, Con."

"Only, you know I don't _try _to hurt meself, Abs," Connor pointed out.

She smiled, relaxing a bit finally as it really sank in that he was okay. "You _are_ somewhat accident prone, you know."

A moment later they heard Becker and Danny returning and Abby quickly scampered away from Connor. Connor looked at her and saw she was blushing and he frowned that she was so embarrassed to be seen with him. They both stood as Becker and Danny were filling them in, but Connor barely listened as he watched Abby. She was playing with the dirt with the toe of her boot and suddenly she looked up at him and caught his eye, exchanging a secret smile with him. '_Sorry,' _she mouthed, and Connor wondered if she knew she'd hurt him by backing away quickly like that.

* * *

Abby felt a bit badly. Her reaction to being caught with Connor was purely instinct really, and it wasn't like Danny and Becker didn't know they were close. She wanted to make it up to him and wished a bit that she hadn't, once again, used up her turn too early. She wondered how she'd gone from thinking she wouldn't kiss him anymore to wishing she could kiss him again right away within a matter of hours.

Still, the rules were the rules and it was Connor's turn. So she'd just have to wait and make it up to him another time.

* * *

A week went by and Connor hadn't taken his turn yet. There'd been a few moments when she thought he was going to, but then he'd seemingly changed his mind. It was frustrating her beyond belief, but she wasn't quite admitting that to herself yet, let alone to him. What really got her was that, so far, Connor seemed to have a lot more willpower about this game than she did. She'd never expected that when they'd first begun. She'd always thought that Connor, with his silly crush on her, would cave over and over again.

She realised now that she should've known it'd be like this. She'd always been the more impulsive one. She'd been the one to kiss Connor properly in the first place, despite his fancying of her for three years. It'd been silly to assume that Connor had no will power of his own. She couldn't tell him that his control over this game was actually terrifying her sometimes. She worried a bit that her embarrassed reaction back at the anomaly site was the reason he wasn't kissing her anymore.

So she was relieved, albeit a bit shocked, when she woke up on a Saturday morning to find his lips pressed to hers. She responded to the kiss, sleepily, drawing him closer. "Connor?" she breathed against his mouth, not pulling away so the kiss wouldn't end.

It did though. Connor pulled back and smiled at her, lying back beside her on her bed. It was becoming a habit, Abby thought, for them to cuddle after a kiss. She wondered briefly about that as she felt him caressing her arm up and down.

"Surprised you, didn't I?" Connor smirked at her.

Abby chuckled, "Yes, you did. I was going to have a lie in, you know?"

"Sorry," he apologized.

Abby shook her head, "It's fine, Con. Better than fine. It was a lovely way to wake up."

Connor grinned, "Yeah? I should make a confession though. I was a little bit hoping you didn't wake up. Figured if you didn't know I took a turn it wouldn't count."

Abby sat up and gave him a thwack with her pillow. "Still counts," she announced. "Definitely it would still count."

"Shame," he smiled. "But I'm still allowed. It's just a draw now. We're at three each, I believe."

Abby nodded, "Yeah, that's my count too." Then she smiled, "Connor, would you like to go for a walk with me?"

He nodded eagerly and ran to get dressed.

* * *

Abby glanced around at all the people in the park. She was doing this for Connor, to make up for how she'd reacted to him at the anomaly site, she told herself. Anyway, no one here really knew them. Still, the thought of kissing him in public made her nervous. People would _see _them and assume they were a couple. She didn't know why that concept was so hard for her.

So far, Connor seemed oblivious to the fact that she wasn't listening to his rambling at all. Abby wondered if the people thought they were already a couple. They weren't holding hands or anything, but they were walking quite close together around the lake in the quite romantic little park. There was no reason to think they _weren't _together. She took a deep breath and stopped under a willow tree, reaching for Connor's arm to stop him too. He looked at her curiously, all the while still going on about something far too technical for her to understand.

"Connor, shut up," she ordered, stepping toward him and wrapping her arms around his neck.

It took Connor a moment to realise what was happening and to respond to the kiss, but when he did, he responded eagerly, his hands slipping around her waist and drawing her closer. The kiss was wonderfully slow and romantic, he thought, and he was sorry when she broke it again.

"Abby," he whispered to her, keeping his voice down for privacy as he became aware how many people were nearby, "that was amazing."

Abby grinned at him, "I just… I wanted you to know that I'm not embarrassed by you, Con. Thought I should kiss you somewhere more public."

Connor's face lit up and he gave her a peck on the nose. "Really amazing, Abs. It's going to be hard for me to beat that one."

"Beat it?"

"It _is _a game, right Abs? So I have to beat it, so I win."

"Connor, I don't think this is the type of game that has winners or losers."

"No, no losers for sure. I think we're both winning with this game, but still, when I play games, I try to be the best. So now I have to beat that."

Abby rolled her eyes. "Fine, I guess that _could _add an element of fun to the game. Just don't…" she stopped.

"Don't what?"

She hesitated, "Just maybe don't take too long to come up with something. I can't believe I used my turn up so fast when you waited a week!"

Connor chuckled. "It was you who made the two month time limit, Abs."

"Yeah, only I made that when I thought it was gonna be _you _waiting for me to take a turn. Not the other way around. We could change it, maybe. Didn't you want a time limit of a week?"

Connor shook his head, his eyes shining with amusement. "Nope, no changes. I quite like having you chase after me for a change."

"I'm not chasing after you," she said quickly, blushing. "It's just a game after all. I just like having a turn."

Connor kissed her nose one more time, "Alright, that's what I meant then. Should we finish our walk?"

Abby nodded and they let go of each other's embrace, but when Connor took a chance and reached for her hand, Abby didn't bother to protest.

* * *

It didn't take Connor long to figure out how he was going to 'beat' Abby. Her idea had been to kiss him in public, so his was to kiss her at the ARC. He wasn't going to go so far as to kiss her when the others were around, but he knew just the daring of a nice long kiss where they could potentially be caught would do the trick. And he'd do it where there were CCTV cameras too. The chance that anyone would be watching them was slim, but he liked that the risk was still there. He didn't honestly care if they did get caught.

He found her alone in the menagerie early on Monday morning and drew her to his side. Abby knew instantly what he wanted and glanced at the camera nervously. "Here?" she asked.

Connor chose to answer her by pressing his lips against his. He wondered a bit if he'd gone too far by pursuing the game at work, but after a moment's hesitation, she did return the kiss. He sighed with relief against her lips, inadvertently breaking it sooner than he'd planned. Abby raised an eyebrow at him. "Here?" she repeated.

Connor grinned, "I told you I had to beat you someway."

"But still, here?" she glanced at the camera. "What if they saw?"

Connor smiled in amusement. "Remember, Abs, you kissed me where people could see and you said you weren't embarrassed."

"Yes, but those were strange people."

"What was so strange about them? I daresay we're the stranger lot."

Abby giggled, "I didn't mean it like that. I meant they were strangers. They don't know us."

"Thing is, Abs, I don't think you actually minded one bit."

"Maybe not," she smiled, thinking that he was perhaps right.


	3. Kisses That Mean Something

To Abby's surprise, she found herself thinking about how she could one up Connor. She knew she'd told him it wasn't the winning or losing type of game and that it didn't matter, but after Connor's stunt, she wanted to win too.

She'd already done the public thing, so that was a no-go. Then she smiled. If public was no good, she'd have to go private.

She waited until that evening when she heard him jump into the shower before picking the lock, hoping he'd have thought to close the shower curtain at least. Thankfully, due to her constant nagging over the years when he'd left puddles on the floor, he'd done so.

"Connor?" she asked loudly over the hot water and steam that filled the bathroom.

His head poked around the edge of the curtain and he looked at her, horrified. "Abby! What are you…? I'm trying to wash meself here!"

"I know," she said, tossing him a towel from the closet. "But this is important so cover yourself up, yeah?"

He disappeared again and she heard the water turn off. A few moments later he emerged into the steam with the towel tied tightly around his waist, still dripping wet. Abby gulped. She'd meant to throw Connor off by kissing him when he was having his private time, but she hadn't quite counted on how _hot _he'd look. She found herself taken just as much off guard as he probably was. And he was staring at her expectantly.

When she didn't move, he spoke. "Abby? If there's something so important that you have to tell me this instant, you'd best do so, because I've got a shower to get back to…"

She was going to back down, but then changed her mind. If there's one thing she wasn't, it was a coward. "I didn't say I had something to tell you though, did I?"

"Huh?" The comedic puzzlement on Connor's face relaxed her a bit and she smiled, stepping closer.

"My turn," she said, stepping closer and pulling his lips down to his. She heard him groan against her, and wondered if maybe this had been too much. She felt her t-shirt become soaked from his chest as he pulled her flush against him. She was about to break away, but Connor seemed to sense it and one of his hands flew up to her hair, keeping her in place as he gently bit down on her lip. It was Abby's turn to moan as she granted him further entry to her mouth, ignoring all thoughts that this was a really, really bad idea.

And yet, she still wasn't breaking the kiss. Rather she was trying desperately to deepen it more than it already was, fighting with him for dominance and determined he wasn't going to win the battle when it was _her _kiss. One of her hands had become entangled in his hair and the other was clawing at his dripping back. They finally broke apart with a mutual understanding that breathing was important too.

"Umm… wow," she said, her face flushed red.

Connor laughed a bit, embarrassed himself as he let go of her. Then he took both her hands in his and pressed his forehead against hers with a smile. "Yeah, I'd say 'wow' about sums it up. Abby, how the hell am I gonna beat that?"

She smiled, "Even if I had the foggiest notion that you could, I wouldn't give away my ideas."

She pulled her hands free suddenly and turned from the room, "And now you've gone and gotten me soaked, yeah? So I'm gonna go change while you finish washing yourself. Sorry for the interruption."

And Connor knew that she wasn't sorry in the slightest.

* * *

It seemed a bit repetitive, Connor thought, going after Abby in the ARC again, but it was the only way he could possibly beat her last kiss. This time he was going to make sure the team _did _see it. Only, it seemed everyone was busy with their own projects and he never managed to have Abby around him when the full team was around as a witness.

Finally, after nearly two somewhat quiet weeks had gone by, he knew he couldn't wait much longer. Abby would be worried that her kiss had gone too far and he wasn't going to kiss her back and the last thing he wanted was for things to become weird between them and have her call off the game. He decided that if he could catch her in front of even two other team mates, he'd snog her senseless, regardless of which team mates they were.

The chance presented him that afternoon in the staff room. He'd already seen Becker and Danny head in there for lunch, so when Abby appeared at his side and said she was gonna run to the staffroom to grab some coffee and wanted to know if he wanted her to bring him some, he stood and followed her, saying maybe they should have a break too.

He waited until she'd poured the coffees as he wondered what would be the best way to get Danny and Becker's attention. They seemed lost in their own world as they talked about plans for Becker's military. As luck would have it, it was his own clumsy fingers that got their attention. Abby handed him the coffee and he hadn't quite grasped it when she let go, the mug falling to the ground and shattering at his feet.

"Oops," he said.

Abby sighed and put down her own coffee on a table, reaching for the paper towel.

It was an opportunity that couldn't be missed and Becker and Danny were still staring over, so Connor knocked the towels from her hand and kissed her as she squirmed in his embrace, clearly in shock at his timing.

He grinned when she finally realised what was happening and kissed him back, ignoring Danny and Becker's wolf whistles and hoots of laughter. The kiss wasn't nearly as romantic as some of their previous ones and she pulled away quickly, giving him a mock glare.

Danny and Becker had stood up and come closer. "Didn't think you had it in you, mate," Becker commented.

"Oh, it's not their first," Danny retorted. "I caught her kissing him at the race track. Just thought it was a one time deal, didn't realise you two were actually together now."

"We're not," Abby replied quickly. "It's just a game."

"A game?" Becker asked, in disbelief, "What type of a game is that? Didn't look like no game to me."

Connor grinned, "It's only like the best game ever! It's the Kissing Game. Me and Abs invented it."

The guys began laughing all over again. "Oi!" Danny teased, turning toward Abby and puckering his lips. "Can I play?"

Connor gave him a shove, "No! It's just a two player game, right, Abs?" he said looking at her and hoping desperately she'd agree.

"Two players," she nodded. "And it _is _a game. A proper one, with rules and everything."

"Yeah, I'd like to hear those rules," Becker said, raising an eyebrow in amusement.

"Well," Connor began, "You have to have turns, only it's anyone's go now because we're drawn at five now… I think? Five?"

Abby nodded, "Yeah, we're drawn at five. And there's a time limit of two months to make your move and all, and only certain things qualify."

"Right," Connor nodded, kissing her cheek with a grin and turning back to the two very amused men, "See, that doesn't count as a proper turn."

"And of course there's the two player rule we already told you about," Abby said, "So see, loads of rules. Just a game is all. The kisses don't actually mean anything to either of us."

And then Connor joined the other two in their laughter and Abby scowled at him. "What's so funny?!" she demanded.

"It's just... Hell, Abs, even _I _don't believe that one!"

Abby froze at that admission and even Becker and Danny stopped laughing and looked at him.

"Oooh, so glad I'm not you," Danny whistled, patting Connor on the back and quickly leaving the room.

Becker shook his head at Connor and followed Danny out. Connor looked at Abby who was still standing still. She didn't look angry, but she definitely looked shocked. "Abs, I just said something bad, didn't I?"

"I-I don't know, Connor," she whispered, finding her voice.

"Abby, are you mad at me?"

"No, just…scared you might be right."

Connor pulled her into a hug and kissed the top of her head. She surprised them both, as well as the spying Becker and Danny, when she didn't pull away.

* * *

Abby didn't sleep that night. Connor's words kept running through her head. _Did _it mean something when they kissed? He hadn't suggested they were in a relationship or anything like that, but even the slightest hint that this might be turning into something more, made her realise they were playing with fire here. She wondered if she should put a halt to the game, but something held her back. A little piece of her was curious to see where it would lead. A part of her thought that maybe, just maybe, it was actually _okay _if Connor was right.

She snuck up to the loft to see if he was awake.

"Abby?" he whispered when she entered.

"Did I wake you?"

"No," he admitted, "I was just thinking." He sat up and pushed the blankets back for her to join him. "Sit."

Abby did so, and Connor immediately drew her close. "I know you said you aren't mad, Abs, but I shouldn't have said what I did. I'm sorry."

"Don't be," she replied. "You were being honest. The question is, if our kisses mean something, _what _do they mean?"

Connor chuckled, "Shall we find out?" He leaned towards her, capturing her lips gently and comfortingly.

There was no one-upmanship in this kiss, neither of them tried to dominate the other. It was tender and oh, so, so meaningful, Abby thought. She barely registered the tears streaming down her face until Connor broke away and began wiping them off her cheeks.

"Abs, why are you crying?"

"I don't even know," she said, chuckling a bit through the tears. "Maybe overtired. I should go back to my own bed."

"No," Connor shook his head, "Stay here tonight, Abs."

Abby nodded and lay down, feeling Connor slide further into the bed as well.

"Connor?" she whispered in the dark suddenly.

"Yeah?"

"I think it's the first time you've used up your turns before me."

"Yeah," he whispered back, "but it was worth it, Abs. That was the best kiss yet."

"Was it?"

"It meant the most."

Abby smiled and cuddled into his side. He was definitely right, and it wasn't at all a bad thing.

* * *

Abby woke up and smiled at Connor. He quickly gave her a peck on the lips and she frowned. "_Con-nor! _It wasn't your turn."

Connor blushed, "I know, Abby… but the thing is…"

"Yes?" she asked impatiently, wondering how she'd get back at him for his nerve. After all, every time it'd been his turn only, she'd waited patiently, sometimes for weeks.

"Only, Abs, I don't think the rules are in place anymore. See, here's the thing, yeah? I don't think it's a game anymore because we said that we'd only play until we was dating, and I think we are."

Abby smiled, amused at the way he was nervously twiddling with the edge of the blanket as he spoke. She was surprised that the idea didn't scare her at all. "You know, Connor Temple," she replied. "You just may be right."

And neither of them was sure who initiated the kiss this time.

* * *

Danny and Becker glanced up, amused, when Connor and Abby arrived at the ARC holding hands.

"So," Becker said, gesturing, "is this one of the _rules?_"

Connor shook his head with a grin. "No. Abby and I decided we was dating and it would be silly to take turns with kissing. So we stopped playing."

Becker laughed, "You know, I've heard of couples getting together in many ways, but this one was a new one. You'd _think _you'd have realised your feelings a little sooner."

"Yeah, well, it worked didn't it?" Abby retorted.

"True," Danny said, surprisingly coming to her rescue. "I think it was just the push you two needed. Great idea for a game I must say. In fact…" He trailed off, mischievously wiggling his eyebrows at them as he left the room calling, "Hey Sarah! Wanna play a game?"


End file.
